Light's Dawn of Azeroth

Chapter 800, Part 13: The Midnight Mission of a Repentant Man - Bonus Chapter [45]

(Bonus chapter for changes in word count [4/5])
"So, what kind of help do you need? Reinforcements? Magic? Or some magical artifacts that can cause chaos? I have them all! In preparation for this battle, I answered the conquerors' call and brought all my resources with me."

Outside the petrified forest, Malchezaar cautiously maintained his distance, questioning Illidan ahead, but the Starhunter gestured for him to be quiet; the aloof demon hunter seemed to have no intention of speaking to him.

The great demon, having made a fool of himself, pondered how to persuade the fellow to charge ahead in order to minimize the losses of his people. Then he saw Illidan make a listening gesture.

There seemed to be some movement around.

Mak'zal also sensed a holy light gathering behind it. It looked back in great fear, knowing that it must be Diakum sending an avatar.

really!

There was some kind of agreement between the conquerors and the vigilant!

Mak'zar thought so, but the next instant, the flickering flames of Sargeras gathered behind it into a scorching Demonhunter's Blade, which pierced its heart as Lord Man'ari's expression changed drastically.

Mak'zar screamed as he was forced to his knees under the cold and cruel spells of the Star Hunter.

It wanted to struggle; it could fight back, after all, it was a great demon that had fought for 20,000 years.

But at that moment, Malchezaar had a sudden realization. It seemed to understand why Illidan had done this. After a moment's hesitation, it lowered its head under the intimidating gaze of Illidan's eyes, which were poised to unleash their deadly beams, and endured the pain to face its fate.

During the execution of the Demon Hunter's cruel arcane spells, all of their demonic power is drained.

Along with its demonic soul, which no longer resisted, it was pulled out of its body and eventually transformed into a precious "Legion Charm" in Illidan's hands.

This is a magical artifact used by demon hunters to unleash certain powerful forces.

Illidan clenched his fists, letting the burning Legion runes dissipate in his hands, then flicked his fingers to draw the last embers into the magic blade.

"This is the only 'help' I need."

The Star Hunter dispersed his demonic blade and said:
"Three thousand years of atonement begins now! I am your warden and guard, and I will decide whether to reduce your sentence based on your subsequent 'performance.' Therefore, you had better behave yourself, prisoner Makzhar."

Having said that, Illidan used his wings to disperse the ashes and continued onward, finding a place to wait for those who were about to make a decision and repent.

Minutes later, the courageous Man'ari found Illidan Stormrage waiting for them outside the petrified forest. The Starhunter had already slaughtered a group of demons roaming the area.

He was currently selecting usable materials in the burning, corpse-strewn demon camp, while also scrutinizing the special Man'ari that Kil'jaeden had sent specifically for this battle.

The Star Hunters had no particular feelings for these Manari.

In his eyes, these guys who embraced fel energy and turned into demons were no different from other demons. He wasn't an Eredar, so he didn't look at these red-skinned hoofed people from a special perspective.

In fact, over the past ten thousand years of hunting, these cruel and cunning "intelligent demons" have caused the Illidari far too much trouble.

A third of Illidan's lost subordinates were killed by Man'ari, and the reason why those traitors betrayed him was also inextricably linked to these cunning and vicious divine punishment warlocks.

He had every reason to loathe these red-skinned half-demons.

Moreover, demon hunters always have their own way of identifying their prey.

Demons aren't foolish enough to stay in their demon form forever; they always change their appearance. Some demons' disguises are so sophisticated that even demon hunters can't see through them.

This is where the Illidari's "special discrimination technique" comes in handy.

Just give him a cut!

If one cannot bear the pain and reveals their true demonic nature, then they are a cunning demon skilled in disguise; if one endures the pain but still howls in other life forms, then they are a resilient and cunning demon skilled in disguise.

If the opponent doesn't tell the truth, keep attacking. After killing them, their soul is called by the distorted void, which proves they are undoubtedly a demon. Directly use the Demon Hunter's Soul Devouring Secret Technique to devour this demon soul and strengthen your own inner demon.

If the suspect is killed and their soul isn't summoned by the Twisting Nether, then... well, a freshly fabricated wrongful conviction is thus burdened with sin on the Demon Hunters.

how to say?

It's no wonder that the Illidari are hated and resistant by their own people. Besides using demonic power and having demonic forms, their behavior is basically no different from that of demons due to the influence of fel energy. They often do terrible things like not caring about human lives at critical moments.

However, on the other hand...

If the Illidari come knocking on your door and think you're a demon in disguise, then you should probably examine whether your usual behavior is a bit unusual.

In general, demon hunters rarely do such crazy things in the material world.

If they are driven to such a point, it proves that the local environment must have become so chaotic that no one would notice one or two more wrongful convictions.

As the undisputed leader of the Illidari, Illidan Stormrage was the mastermind and pioneer of this style of action.

The Star Hunter's great reputation in the material star sea was not only due to his superb hunting skills, but also to his ruthless style of doing things.

The Illidari have done things like the Holy Light Legion annihilating a world that is beyond saving before.
But while the Warriors of Light of the Holy Light Legion would feel remorse and sorrow for such actions, the Demon Hunters would only feel that this punishment and destruction came too late.

These are all heartless demon hunters.

Because of this fearsome reputation, the men of Man'ari, who had been roused to participate in the war, still trembled with fear when facing Illidan.

They certainly trusted the reputation of the vigilant.

However, the image of the Star Hunter in the eyes of these lower-level demons is basically no different from that of Diakum; both are figures of "legend."

Illidan sensed this fear, but he made no attempt to defend himself, simply stating coldly:

Where are your weapons?

This question made the woman, Manari, pause for a moment, and she whispered:

"We don't handle weapons much because the Sculptors forbid us from getting our hands dirty."

“I don’t want to hear this, I’m just curious.”

Illidan said coldly:

"How will you fight if you don't have weapons? With your claws?"

"Yes, with claws!"

The elderly, repentant sorcerer flexed his five fingers and explained:

“We are all trained, we preserve the traditions of the Jadney ritual, and everyone here can fight skillfully with their fists and feet!”

"Hmm, a bunch of fel monks, how strange."

The Star Hunter let out a strange laugh, raised his head, and said:

"You seem to have a lineage of monks who also possess the 'Fist of Argus,' so why not arm them with it? You, the watchman who is hiding and spying, wouldn't want to see your people, who have been suffering in the darkness, die in the night before dawn, would you?"
Nathrax Castle is garrisoned with elite troops!
"I can't possibly break through there with these inexperienced recruits." The summoned power clearly saw this predicament, and soon a dim beam of light floated before the unarmed Manari.

It's like a floating crack.

It was like a dark purple eye opening in an air filled with evil energy.

The repentant ones are not lacking in the strength and will to fight; they simply lack combat experience.

Therefore, the ray of light that Diakum sent down opened up a new legacy for them. After all, they were fel beings, so they certainly couldn't learn the Fist of Light, but the Fist of Shadow was very suitable for them.

This last-minute cramming did not last long.

Given the importance of this battle, the Vigilant mobilized the power of their faith in the highest heavens to complete a collective "divine revelation."

The light of dawn enveloped the repentant ones who still harbored fear and trepidation, temporarily imprinting the legacy of the Fist of Argus into their minds as a kind of "mental imprint," so that they could quickly master these essential combat skills.

The knowledge gained through such divine revelation is not permanent.

It will only last for a maximum of 72 hours before it begins to dissipate, but for those individuals eager to master the power, that is enough time for them to transform these combat techniques into their own skills.

Giving divine revelation to more than 10,000 people at once would be considered a miracle of the High Heavens in other kingdoms of the People of Light and would be permanently recorded in local history. But in the distant land of fel magic, it was merely part of a "pre-battle blessing" held to complete a surprise attack.

While the divine revelation was being delivered, Diakum also bestowed appropriate mental blessings upon these repentant individuals.

Using their now unparalleled mastery of mental power, they temporarily opened their hearts to each other, igniting a flame within the repentant ones a burning desire to return to Eredar society and be accepted back by their people.

Relying on the burning flame of courage, they temporarily suppressed their fear and confusion.

"Take them to the battlefield!"

Diakum gave Illidan, who was already prepared for the surprise attack, some instructions:

"The effects of this blessing will last until dawn. You'd better finish destroying the Heart of Evil when the first rays of sunlight fall. Once that thing is destroyed, it will cause a terrible shake-up in the morale of the local demons. After that, you must hold out there until the Restoration Army arrives."

You know what to do!

“I know that, but I doubt they can get here before all these repentant people, whom you consider ‘victims,’ fall.”

Illidan said:

"Even with the use of the Sargerit Keystone, Argus can only be transported to the vicinity of Azeroth, which is still an insurmountable distance for mortals."

"Leave these to me. You don't need to think too much. Just focus on winning."

The Vigilante gave the Starhunter a firm answer, allowing Illidan to breathe a sigh of relief. Without further hesitation, the Witcher forged his blade with the flames of Sargeras, and under the midnight light of Argus, led the Repentant on their journey to Nathrax Keep.

The once magnificent Krokun Plains have been completely destroyed by fel energy, and the former landscape has been replaced by a scene of utter devastation.

After the fall of Argus, those who repented were sent to different worlds by the Sculptors. Most of them did not set foot on their homeland in the past 20,000 years. Now, seeing the devastated land transformed into a pool of fel energy, it no longer has the scenery of the grasslands of the past. And those cruel demons walk arrogantly on the land that once belonged to them, gloating over the suffering they inflict on this land.

It's unclear who clenched their fist first, but soon a sense of shared hatred and righteous indignation, coupled with the application of mental power, ignited the courage and desire to fight in the repentant ones.

Although they were embraced by evil energy, through long meditation and perseverance, their minds did not fall into demonic ways.

Illidan keenly noticed the surging murderous intent in the hearts of these repentant individuals, and he was very pleased with it.

Therefore, after briefly explaining the tactics, Illidan disappeared into the nighttime hunt of the demon hunters. In a short period of time, the lords and high-ranking commanders of this fel-filled pool fell one after another, and uneasy chaos erupted among the demons.

Meanwhile, those repentant individuals hidden in the shadows outside the molten pool encouraged each other, waited, and simmered with rage.

Until a blinding fel rune burst into flames above the molten pool, the agreed-upon battle signal was given. The elderly penitent was the first to stand up, swinging his rough, animal-bone staff forward. The female penitent, whose hands still bore the marks of holy light, then clenched her fists and charged forward.

She was afraid, and she knew that many of the people behind her were not children born in Argus.

Although the Man'ari have been reproductively isolated from the Eredar, they can still have children through intermarriage. Although they are demons, they still need to conceive and give birth.

For these brave yet confused people, Argus was also the homeland they had learned about from their fathers.

But now, seeing this land ravaged by demons, the rage bursting from their blood made them true warriors, just like the Eredar civilians who, more than 20,000 years ago, would take up arms to fight against demons.

"what!"

She roared, replacing weak shouts with a sharp howl, and as she charged into the molten pool, her shadow-shrouded fists swung up, striking the demon guard before her with the hard but powerful Argus Shadow Fist.

The latter's head exploded with a bang, like a foul-smelling watermelon.

The Eredar are inherently powerful, and the penitents, blessed by fel energy, have their destructive power greatly amplified. They do not consider themselves demons, but they do possess demonic power.

It's important to understand that Man'ari is a high-ranking demon in the Burning Legion's hierarchy. Therefore, when these repentant demons charged out all at once, their chaotic formation and disorganized fighting style caused them to coalesce into a rampaging torrent. The lower-ranking demons, who had no command, were simply unable to stop these enraged ones.

Thus, this pool of fel energy became the first battlefield for the repentant in their war of restoration.

As Illidan continued his charge, firing fireworks to guide his way, the Repentant Ones swiftly entered the heart of the molten pool. There they found Illidan hunting a roaring pit lord, while the true "Man'ari" warlocks around them attempted to disrupt the Starhunters' battle with fel magic.

When the repentant ones rushed onto the high platform of the molten pool, the two sides met face to face and were both stunned.

The Burning Legion's Man'ari warlocks stared in astonishment at the group of unarmed, red-skinned penitents covered in the blood of their "demon brethren," wondering if these guys had gone mad.

Why should we help the Star Hunters fight against the Legion?
The repentant ones looked at Man'ari, who was directing the demons' counterattack. They saw the more grotesque fel tattoos on the bodies of their kin who had willingly fallen into demonhood, as well as the scars and blisters on their faces caused by excessive exposure to fel energy. These made them look more like demons than demons themselves.

Both sides have the same physical form, but at this moment they have been divided into completely different camps.

It was the elderly, repentant elder who was the first to launch an attack. He seemed to have seen the most terrifying blasphemy, and enraged, he swung his bone staff and charged forward with the posture of a soaring dragon, starting with the vicious and ruthless Touch of Reincarnation.

The Touch of Reincarnation, which uses evil energy instead of the aura of death, no longer possesses the stealthy, assassinative quality of "instant death upon contact." Instead, like the "Fist of the North Star," it causes the unfortunate sorcerer's chest to explode upon contact with the target.

More repentant people rushed forward.

The fierce, repentant girl also defeated a Heavenly Punishment Sorcerer who was attacked from both sides. The latter was also a woman, but had already lost an eye in the battle.

Her face was scarred and hideous. With her single remaining eye, she glared at her comrade whose fists dripped demonic blood, and she roared:

"Damn it! Why! We're clearly compatriots!"

"No! We became demons out of necessity, while you chose to fall!"

The repentant man pounced on her, striking her repeatedly with heavy blows, and she roared:

"You are not our compatriots! You are a disgrace! It is because of your outrageous behavior and your betrayal that we are seen as symbols of evil and weakness. Only when all you cowardly accomplices are dead can the repentant embrace a new life!"
this matter.
This is something we can only accomplish ourselves; it is the inspiration of the Holy Light!
From this day forward, even those who repent have a mission, and we will surely fulfill it!

(End of this chapter)